Media content can now be received from any number of different sources. Broadcast television content, for example, can typically be received at set-top box (STB) or other receiver that receives a direct broadcast satellite (DBS), cable and/or terrestrial broadcast signal, and such received content may also be stored in a personal or digital video recorder (DVR) or the like for viewing at a later time (“time shifting”). Live or recorded content can also be “placeshifted” over the Internet or another network to allow viewing at remote locations away from the viewer's primary television set. In addition to the wide variety of options in viewing broadcast media content, even more content is increasingly becoming available “on demand” from any number of file based or streaming sources, including various network-based services that provide access to a wealth of on-demand programming.
As content becomes available from a multitude of sources, however, it can be increasingly difficult to locate related programming from different sources. Typically, different content sources provide media content using different techniques and/or formats. For example, each content provider may use a different format when providing metadata that describes the media content being made available by that respective content provider. Due to the wide variety of formats and content sources, locating related programming from different content sources can be a significant challenge. For example, if a viewer wishes to locate a particular program or episode, an online media distribution service may need to conduct separate searches of broadcast program guides, on-demand libraries, online video libraries, DVR contents and/or the like to try and find the desired program using the search criteria provided by the view. The wealth of content available and the variety of the metadata formats used by the various content sources further complicates such searches.
As a result, it is now desirable to create systems and methods for managing related media content from various content sources. Other desirable features and characteristics may also become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background section.